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WTA is currently at work on a white paper, "Ka-Band and the Teleport." It seeks to alert teleport operators to the threats and opportunities created by the continued growth of Ka-band capacity and applications, and to assess what if anything teleport operators are currently doing in Ka-band.

The white paper is based on interviews with experts - and with the results of a Quick Poll of members to learn what they think about this emerging market and what they are doing about it.

It requires just five minutes of your time. And your contribution will help you and your fellow WTA members understand how the success of Ka-band services will impact your business in the next few years.

Why a Ka-Band Study?

Ka-band has evolved quickly from a concept greeted skeptically by the satellite industry to a transformative innovation for specific applications, notably, consumer and SOHO broadband connectivity via satellite. The first commercial Ka-band satellite, Wildblue, was both a technical and business success, so much so that it is already out of capacity. Eutelsat’s Tooway and SES Astra’s ASTRA2Connect service are quickly spreading across Europe today in Ku-band and are planning to switch to Ka band in the near future. Pending satellites like ViaSat-1, Jupiter, O3b, YahSat and Arabsat Ka-band spot-beam satellites will put unprecedented amounts of bandwidth into orbit, and the range of uses is likely to expand to encompass video contribution and other traditional satellite applications.

The progress of Ka-band presents both threats and opportunities to the teleport sector. In its current implementations, Ka-band broadband service is implemented through a small number of regional gateways, which effectively limits it as a teleport opportunity. If more applications transition to Ka-band, it is possible that teleports may see erosion in core businesses such as video. On the opportunity side, the Ka-band market is still emerging, and teleport operators may be able to find new revenue opportunities while protecting their existing business.